cardas hexlink golden 5c speaker cable

Yes, my memory is that Hexlink is much warmer and less transparent than either the Golden Cross series or the Golden Reference series. Again, I'm basing this on memory and different equipment, but it was quite a strong impression at the time.

Putting it another way, I owned Golden Cross a long time and was very happy with it. Have owned others along the way (e.g. Audience AU24 regular and E). Currently using Golden Reference for the 2nd or 3rd time and like it a lot.

Byt I was never able to get Hexlink to have sufficient detail for my taste even back when it was a current model.

It MAY be that a lot of other people have had different experiences. This is just my own experience. It is a strong memory though.

My memory - going back two decades - is that it was an extremely warm sounding cable, and would be appropriate for a system that has a harsh sound that you wish to tame. I have not heard this cable in a long time and certainly not on modern equipment.

I find that in many systems, Cardas is not the first choice when I wear my audiophile analytical cap. Other cables are sometimes a little faster, more detailed on top, etc.

HOWEVER, when I want to enjoy the music, Cardas usually stomps the others. It seems to have a naturalness that conveys the emotion of a piece more beautifully than other cables.

I think that George Cardas optimizes his designs for overall beauty of reproduction rather than speed and detail.

My preference is usually for Cardas Golden Reference over Cardas Golden Cross, unless I'm dealing with an unusually dry sounding system.

A cable I'm experimenting with lately and find fantastic - unfortunately out of production - are the Empirical Audio (Steve Nugent's stuff). This is not Empirical Design, which I've not heard. The EA are a little more detailed and lean than Cardas but still convey the emotion of the music - wonderful.

Another cable that I think offers a good compromise between detail and musicality are the top of the line Discovery, although the bass is not as deep as Cardas Golden Reference.

I have definitely heard some brands of cable which have all the speed and transparency that you could ever ask for but sound dry as a bone and completely un-involving.

System matching with cable is so important!

Art